AK Sponsor
Posted: 3/10/2009 1:56:31 PM EDT
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How do you get that aged look to your Ak-47..
I see it in some of the pictures in the thread, but i didn't know if there was an actual way to do it... Its almost like silver and black mixed together in a aged pattern.. Thanks ~Joshua |
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You leave it in your car too long. http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/feldmarschel/zombiepic.jpg Not to hijack, but what kind country is that magazine? |
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You leave it in your car too long. http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/feldmarschel/zombiepic.jpg Not to hijack, but what kind country is that magazine? Russian |
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You leave it in your car too long. http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/feldmarschel/zombiepic.jpg Not to hijack, but what kind country is that magazine? Russian Cool, thanks |
| Ive heard of some people using fine steel wool and scotchbrite pads to achieve the "battle field pickup" look.....You can also get one of those rusty kits that were floating around a while ago,and remove the rust.....it also removes the paint or bluing and leave a really nice worn and slightly pitted look.... |
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i did the battlefield pickup look on a WASR-10, as an experiment to refine the process.
I know that if I were to do another, it would come out much better from all I learned on the first one, but here are some pics: 
I used one of those green and yellow scrub sponges to gradually lighten the finish in wear areas, but went a bit overboard on some spots and not quite enough on others. Not the greatest, and certainly not an authentic look, but it is a proof of concept. |
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You leave it in your car too long. Just curious, how long was it left in the car? About two months left in a car that was in a storage shed. Wow, I have an AK pistol that lives in my trunk and it still looks the same as when I put it in there. |
| I did mine with scotchbrite unintentionally after a failed experiment with some expired spray camo––decided I liked the worn look better than the camo anyway, and that it wouldn't be worth refinishing a WASR anyway, so I left it. Just be careful about rust if you do it––much more susceptible without the finish. |
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You leave it in your car too long. Just curious, how long was it left in the car? About two months left in a car that was in a storage shed. Wow, I have an AK pistol that lives in my trunk and it still looks the same as when I put it in there. It was the humidity in the shed I suspect. |
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I've done a few and had decent luck. You really need to study some reference photos and choose the worn look you'd like to emulate. Then it's a matter of tinkering with Scotch-Brite (the green brillow pad) or very fine sandpaper. I've personally found that rifles with a parkerized finish seem to give a really neat "distressed" look.
Basically, start slow and don't get frustrated or "freaked-out" when you don't see results happening immediately. It takes a little elbow grease. But, I've learned as a general rule after studying a lot of photos and seeing first-hand (Middle-East and Africa) how differently where occurs, it commonly happens on the high points. Ensure you understand the general places where the wear can occur (from grasping the rifle with the hand and seeing where it gets worn, etc.). The tops of rivets, corners, edges, bits and pieces that stick out normally get wear. Around the rivets will still maintain finish so you often see the "dark circles" around such things. Any crevices, nooks, and hard-to-reach places will also maintain a bit of finish. Essentially, find a look you like and try to copy it. Also, when using the brillow pads (that's what we normally call them), use a circular motion to give some even looking "wear." To anyone that gets ready start such a project the first time and is still a bit uncomfortable with it, give a shout and myself or others that have done it can help talk you through whatever you may be unsure of - or to give that friendly "push off the cliff into the river" to get you going. 
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You leave it in your car too long. http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/feldmarschel/zombiepic.jpg And what sling is that? Somehow the aged-look of that AK makes it more beautiful... |
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You leave it in your car too long. http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/feldmarschel/zombiepic.jpg And what sling is that? Somehow the aged-look of that AK makes it more beautiful... It's a Dieter sling |
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Why would you want the "worn look"? That means the carbon steal receiver is no longer protected by duracoat or whatever and will rust if not carefully maintained. I don't carefully maintain mine. Most on here would be shocked at how I treat mine. It gets wet a lot, never cleaned in a ridiculous amount of rounds, it's been dropped, gotten mud all over it, etc. Doesn't rust, and works like a charm. Now... my AK74 is another beast. |
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it's already been mentioned, scotchbrite pad or steel wool.
If you do decide to do it, make sure you ONLY hit the high areas and edges or it will come out looking faked. The flat sections on well worn guns rarely lose all of their finish but instead get worn down a bit/scratched. They will however retain more finish than the rest of the gun. For a good example of what I'm talking about look at some issued weapons that our troops are using. The high spots are shiny, the rest are usually still black or black-ish. |
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You leave it in your car too long. http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/feldmarschel/zombiepic.jpg What flash hider is that? Looks like a three-prong AR. |
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You leave it in your car too long. http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h103/feldmarschel/zombiepic.jpg What flash hider is that? Looks like a three-prong AR. That's what it is, actually. |
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it's already been mentioned, scotchbrite pad or steel wool. If you do decide to do it, make sure you ONLY hit the high areas and edges or it will come out looking faked. The flat sections on well worn guns rarely lose all of their finish but instead get worn down a bit/scratched. They will however retain more finish than the rest of the gun. For a good example of what I'm talking about look at some issued weapons that our troops are using. The high spots are shiny, the rest are usually still black or black-ish. It really depends upon how much "wear" you're looking at adn how you want the "wear" to look. Certainly scratches and scrapes contribute to wearing-off the finish but they're not a major factor as simply a palm - sweat and constant rubbing at the finish is going to take it down pretty quick. Along with the abrasives of a harsh environment. If you want a nice "aged" look, you'll really have to go over almost all the surface area of the rifle to give it some vintage. Then, hit the high places/common wear places a bit more (places where you'd imagine a hand around the receiver would take down finish. Just hitting high areas without much concern to the flat areas is certainly going to make it look weird as is where a lot of folks go astray because they're probably a bit too apprehensive about taking off the finish throughout. But "wear" is as unique as fingerprints and there's really no two worn/distressed looking rifles that wear-down alike. Pictures speak volumes so here's just a few reference photos for everyone to peruse. I tried to throw-in a smattering of everything in a short amount of time. Essentially, find a look you are happy about emulating and go forth. It's a technique that will, indeed, take some practice. Even top-notch builders have a hard time fathoming the "distressed" look on a rifle as it goes against their experience. Practice on something first if you're unsure but a Scotch-Brite (brillo pad) in an oval/circular motion throughout the rifle will do a grat vintage foundation. Then, you can hit the areas you want with as much/little wear as you like. (Credit for the photos go to any number of folks that put them on the forums or the internet over the many years but many were from Rusted Ace - if one of yours is on here, contact me and let me know if you want it removed or credit given. I just can't remember all of them): 
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I received this 1973 Romy kit with virtually no finish and decided to finish the receiver and mag to match.
I removed the original bead-blast finish on the receiver and the painted finish on the mag, with a 150 grit NORTON 3X Contour Sponge followed by some 0000 steel wool. After the build was completed, the receiver and mag were degreased with acetone and Birchwood/Casey Super Blue was applied with a folded paper towel. Later, most of the blue was sanded off with a 320 grit NORTON 3X Contour Sponge, again followed with 0000 steel wool.  
I highlighted the high spots and edges by applying a little more pressure, when using the steel wool. To protect the finish, everything was coated with a heavy dose of BreakFree CLP and allowed to penetrate for a half hour, before wiping off the excess. This was done about 3 1/2 years ago and the finish (or lack of) is still looking great today. |
That's a great technique there, as well. It's simply whatever floats your boat. I'm a bit of a dumb guy as well as quite lazy, so I did mine the poor dumb guy way - just fine sandpaper, a brillow pad, and some gun oil. The photos aren't the greatest (and the RPK's wood is going to be changed-out for beater wood as soon as I can find some. And for those at home shaking their head in disbelief that I may have "assed up" a new RPK by seeing the new wood - the barrel assembly was worn and simply put on a new receiver so I just matched the rest of the gun accordingly):
I've never put anything else but plain old gun oil on them and never had any rust issues. It's certainly something to think about if you live in a humid area. Recently, I put some Renaissance Wax over them which has been quite a wonderful help in "preserving" them. No more worries about rust for them. For those interesting in using this great stuff, check it out and see if it's something you might like to try - I figure museums use it on their stuff, it goes on extremely easy (just rub it on), and does no harm to anything: Renaissance Wax Information Some More Reading |
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